Wynonna Judd’s Secret to ‘DWTS’ Success?: ‘I’m a Tank’

Country star Wynonna Judd, whose personal struggles have endeared her to fans as much as her famed country songs, is sure to be one of the most talked-about new cast members this season on “Dancing with the Stars.”

“I’m ready for a challenge… I’m going to try to get away with as much as possible for the rest of my career,” Judd added. “I’ve been doing [country music] 30 years. I’ve done everything I’m supposed to do.”

Now it’s time to step out of her comfort zone, even though it was a tough decision for the “I Saw The Light” singer, who reluctantly agreed to hit the dance floor after swearing she’d never do the show.

“I don’t think people would expect I’d be doing this ["DWTS"] ever,” Wynonna admitted. “I’ve been asked for six seasons and I’ve said no.”

But this time, she decided to take the plunge – but only if pro dancer Tony Dovolani, who won last season’s “DWTS: All-Stars” with Melissa Rycroft, would be her partner!

“This season it just felt like, you know, I can say no, but I called and said if I can have Tony, I’ll do it,” Judd told xfinityTV with the popular “DWTS” pro by her side. “I’m not stupid. In country music, you work with people day in and day out, on the way up and on the way down. You know everybody. Carrie Underwood lives right next to me and Keith Urban lives right down the street. It’s not like we get away with stuff. My point is, I don’t care how talented you are, if you’re a you-know-what, I don’t want to be around you. Life is too short to dance with losers, as they say, and that maybe sounds harsh, but I want to be around champions — and I’m used to being around them.”

Wynonna hopes to be an inspiration to older women by dancing. “48 is a tough age and I think women are going to watch me and see themselves in me and go, ‘If she can do it, I can do it, too.’”

The singer said she’s already been warned by another lady of a certain age, “DWTS” Season 12 and “All-Stars” performer Kirstie Alley, 62, “to buy Band-aids, use buckets of water and ice, rest, get massages, all of that, and I’m like, ‘Oh, my gosh. What have I done?’ But then I stop and go, I’ve been doing 23 hours a day of traveling for that one hour on-stage for 30 years. I don’t get sick. My constitution is so strong. I’m a tank. I’ve missed [only] two shows my entire career.”

Wynonna, who has fought a well-publicized battle with her weight, also told xfinityTV she is looking forward to losing some pounds, but added, “It’s not about that, because I can’t let it be. It has to be about being healthy and doing [the show] because I love it. The rest will follow. I’ve always said that. And when I did my big coming out party after 50 pounds lost and everybody wanted to make it all about that, it’s like being defined by that… Are you kidding me? I’m a singer.”